Tag Archives: AWW

The Draft by Emma Quayle

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , ,

The Draft by Emma Quayle is a book about Australian Rules Football. So most of you will stop reading now…

Quayle’s book follows the 2007 draft, and focuses on five boys out of the 1200 who nominated – Trent Cotchin, Cyril Rioli, Ben McEvoy, Brad Ebert, and Patrick Veszpremi. Each of them was vastly different, and Quayle’s descriptions of their style of play, temperament, and attitude is the most gripping part of this book. In describing the individuals, she also exposes the grueling draft process and how mental health, and mental fitness, is as important as the physical. It’s not enough to be a good kick. Continue reading →

Stella Prize 2023 Shortlist – Hydra by Adriane Howell

Posted by Kate W in Fiction and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Hydra by Adriane Howell is true to its title – a beast that is hard to contain. It’s loosely Australian gothic, and tells of Anja, a young, ambitious antiquarian, whose specialty is mid-century furniture.

We learn a few important things about Anja early in the story – her rival at the auction house where she works is Fran; her marriage ended on a recent trip to Greece; and she is intent on classifying objects based on emotional response (as opposed to origin or period).

Teapots, I decided, were connected to storytelling, belonging to the Department of Once Upon a Time. Continue reading →

Stella Prize 2023 Longlist Reading – Iris by Fiona Kelly McGregor

Posted by Kate W in Fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

In the first few years of the Stella Prize, I put my head down in March and ripped through the entire longlist. But over the last year or two, my enthusiasm has waned, and this year I’ve been distracted by Reading Ireland Month and books on the Women’s Prize longlist, so my Stella reading has been patchy.

I selected Iris by Fiona Kelly McGregor after reading Lisa’s glowing review. Continue reading →

Stella Prize 2023 Longlist Reading – Big Beautiful Female Theory by Eloise Grills

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Defying genres, Big Beautiful Female Theory by Eloise Grills is part graphic memoir, part essay collection, part poetry, part comic book. The theme that runs through the illustrations and text focuses on self-image and the female body and its depiction in art and popular culture. Continue reading →

No Bull by Vika and Linda Bull

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I have long been a fan of Vika and Linda Bull. Of course, there’s the Black Sorrows and their extraordinary backing vocals for Paul Kelly, but it was their self-titled debut album in 1994 – and particularly their song, Sacred Things and the incredible rendition of Many Rivers to Cross – that cemented it for me. Continue reading →

So I’ve made a really long list for the purposes of 2023 Stella longlist

Posted by Kate W in Stuff and Nonsense and tagged with , , , ,

This is the list I’ll be making my 2023 Stella Prize longlist predictions from. Sing out if there are errors (for example the book was not actually published in 2022) or if there are books I’ve missed – my compilation of this list involves absolutely no quality control.

The longlist will be announced on March 2, 2023. Continue reading →

This Is Not a Book about Benedict Cumberbatch by Tabitha Carvan

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

This Is Not a Book about Benedict Cumberbatch by Tabitha Carvan is totally a book about Benedict Cumberbatch, but all within the context of finding something to be passionate about. You see, Carvan was embarrassed (and ‘….afraid, guilty…ashamed’) of her ‘obsession’ with a celebrity, and the book came about after she decided to explore where and how her obsessive thoughts/ shame came from.

What am I doing in the spare room, lit only by the laptop’s false dawn, while my family sleeps? Why am I, a wife and mother, creeping off in the dark to think about celebrity thighs? Why am I, a grown woman, sticking up pictures of a heart-throb on my wall? Not even in nice frames, but torn out of magazines and stuck on with Blu Tack! It will ruin the paint… Continue reading →

Love and Other Puzzles by Kimberley Allsopp

Posted by Kate W in Fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

I have been in a MAJOR reading-rut. In fact, I’ve been faffing-about with two novels (both good, both stories that I’m enjoying) for a month (IKR?!). I decided I needed to change things up. So, I turned to a genre I very rarely read from – rom-com/ ‘chick-lit’ – and picked up Kimberley Allsopp’s debut, Love and Other Puzzles. It was everything I expected – light, warm, and pleasing in a way that a good rom-com always is (i.e. predictable but comforting, and no-loose-ends). Continue reading →